Charlotte Perkins Gilman published her short storyThe Yellow Wallpaperat a time when women’s destiny was to bear children and to enjoy the pleasures of motherhood. In a typical marriage of the time it was understood that the wife would give birth to a child within the first year and a half of the marriage. Furthermore, the total fertility rate of white women in 1890 was 3.87, and one even has to mention here that this number was a result of an already marked decrease of fertility during the preceding century. If one compares this number to the average of 1.3 to 1.4 children a modern woman these days gives birth to, it becomes clear that in 1892 there was still a tremendously strong focus on motherhood as a woman’s ultimate goal in life.
As a contradiction to the expectations of society then, pregnancy and childbearing then was not a blessing to many women, including Charlotte Perkins Gilman, but a frightening mystery which they totally lacked guidance through, as women were thought to be instinctively able to handle this new situation on their own. “…as recently as the 1950s it was not considered polite for obviously pregnant women to appear in public places more than was absolutely necessary.” (Degler, 59) The fact that pregnant women were supposed to hide themselves from the environment as far as possible in order not to be considered indecent further increased the mystification and isolation going along with pregnancy and childbearing. Additionally, the doubled pressure of being wife and mother - with all the duties included - all of a sudden was too much for many women. The challenge of adaptation to this new stressful situation often led and still leads young mothers to the so called “post-natal depression”, which is a central theme inThe Yellow Wallpaper.This special kind of depression can occur within the first year after having given birth to a child and usually goes along with deep sadness, fatigue, crying fits, insomnia, fear, panic attacks, indifferent feelings towards the child - “And yet I cannot be with him, it makes me so nervous” (Gilman, 14) - and anankastic angst, depending of the severity of the depression. Nowadays, this depression can easily be cured, but in the nineteenth century doctors tended to diagnose such women with hysteria and prescribe total tranquility and silence. This is the case with the main protagonist in Gilman’s short story The Yellow Wallpaper. [...]
Table of Contents
1) The “Blessing“ of Childbearing: Charlotte Perkins Gilman The Yellow Wallpaper (1892)
2) A Life of one’s own: Kate Chopin The Story of an Hour (1894)
3) Rejection of a Lifestyle: Marianne Faithfull The Ballad of Lucy Jordan (1979)
4) Conclusion
Objectives and Core Themes
This work examines the restrictive role of women within the American family structure across different literary periods, analyzing how societal expectations and domestic confinement contribute to psychological despair and the struggle for personal autonomy.
- The historical expectation of motherhood and domesticity in the 19th and 20th centuries.
- The psychological impact of social isolation and paternalistic control on married women.
- Literary portrayals of the struggle between societal duty and individual self-assertion.
- The recurring motif of despair and the perception of death as an escape from oppressive domestic roles.
Excerpt from the Book
1) The “Blessing“ of Childbearing: Charlotte Perkins Gilman The Yellow Wallpaper (1892)
Charlotte Perkins Gilman published her short story The Yellow Wallpaper at a time when women’s destiny was to bear children and to enjoy the pleasures of motherhood. In a typical marriage of the time it was understood that the wife would give birth to a child within the first year and a half of the marriage. Furthermore, the total fertility rate of white women in 1890 was 3.87, and one even has to mention here that this number was a result of an already marked decrease of fertility during the preceding century. If one compares this number to the average of 1.3 to 1.4 children a modern woman these days gives birth to, it becomes clear that in 1892 there was still a tremendously strong focus on motherhood as a woman’s ultimate goal in life.
As a contradiction to the expectations of society then, pregnancy and childbearing then was not a blessing to many women, including Charlotte Perkins Gilman, but a frightening mystery which they totally lacked guidance through, as women were thought to be instinctively able to handle this new situation on their own.
Summary of Chapters
1) The “Blessing“ of Childbearing: Charlotte Perkins Gilman The Yellow Wallpaper (1892): This chapter explores the intense societal focus on motherhood in the late 19th century and how the protagonist’s post-natal depression is exacerbated by her husband’s dismissive, paternalistic control.
2) A Life of one’s own: Kate Chopin The Story of an Hour (1894): This section analyzes how the temporary widowhood of the protagonist highlights her desire for individual freedom and the shocking revelation that her marital life was a form of captivity.
3) Rejection of a Lifestyle: Marianne Faithfull The Ballad of Lucy Jordan (1979): This chapter discusses the continued struggle of women in the 20th century, using the song as a narrative to show how shattered dreams and domestic boredom can lead to existential despair.
4) Conclusion: The concluding chapter synthesizes the common threads of female oppression and the recurring motif of death as the only perceived avenue for liberation across the analyzed literary works.
Keywords
Women's Literature, American Family, Domesticity, Motherhood, Post-Natal Depression, Paternalism, Female Autonomy, Societal Expectations, 19th Century, 20th Century, Identity, Oppression, Liberation, Shattered Dreams, Gender Roles.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the primary focus of this work?
The work explores the historical and literary representation of the role of women within the American family, specifically examining how domestic constraints impact the mental well-being and sense of self of women.
What are the central themes discussed?
Key themes include the pressure of motherhood, the conflict between individual desire and social duty, the effects of patriarchal control, and the search for liberation from stifling domestic environments.
What is the core research question?
The research investigates how various female writers have articulated the feeling of captivity within marriage and how their protagonists attempt to reconcile their personal identities with societal expectations.
Which methodology is applied?
The author utilizes a literary analysis approach, contextualized by historical and social data regarding fertility, marriage statistics, and the labor force participation of women in the 19th and 20th centuries.
What does the main body cover?
The main body provides in-depth literary interpretations of Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s The Yellow Wallpaper, Kate Chopin’s The Story of an Hour, and Marianne Faithfull’s The Ballad of Lucy Jordan.
Which keywords define this research?
Essential keywords include Women's Literature, Domesticity, Motherhood, Paternalism, Female Autonomy, Gender Roles, and Identity.
How does the author interpret the ending of The Yellow Wallpaper?
The author interprets the protagonist's final actions as a form of symbolic liberation, where the woman is able to free herself from her husband's paternalistic control by breaking out of the mental prison represented by the wallpaper.
Why is the "latchkey" significant in The Story of an Hour?
The latchkey serves as a powerful metaphor; while it represents access to the home, it also functions as a symbol of the husband’s authority, effectively locking the protagonist back into a life she no longer wishes to lead.
What commonality does the author find between these three distinct works?
The author notes that all three works denounce the systemic neglect of women's needs and rights, suggesting that death is the only outlet for protagonists who feel trapped in lives they never chose.
- Quote paper
- Dagmar Hecher (Author), 2006, The Woman in the American Family, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/60729
